Operation Shinobi: Emotion Containers
by zeballwithlegs
Summary: Meet Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto, the children who've fought for freedom far longer than they've experienced it. Come, as they complete a seemingly never ending-journey of growing up, of loss and of love. "We can still have a childhood in this, dattebayo"
1. The Adolescent Soldier

D o y o u b e l i e v e i n G o d ?

_"_

_DRIP_

D R O P

_DRIP_

D R O P

"

_Dear God, let the rain fall._

L e t m e g e t t h r o u g h t h i s.

* * *

><p><strong>~OPERATION SHINOBI: EMOTION CONTAINERS~<strong>

C h a p t e r 1 : T h e A d o l e s c e n t S o l d i e r.

* * *

><p>It was dark. A little girl sat hunched over a loose notebook made from what looked like hundreds of dirty parchments, some torn, others stained, some with messy scrawls and doodles along the sides. She fiddled with the raffia string that held the pages together, redoing the messy knot and thus securing the mismatched papers to their makeshift cardboard binding.<p>

She slowly flipped the switch on her flashlight, narrowing her eyes at the sudden brightness. The light brought her green eyes to life, it danced in her dilated pupils and lit up the pale textured canvas that was her face.

Under the bright light, you could see her scars clearly. You could see how battle-worn this 11 year old really was. You could see the now barely visible gash that ran through the middle of her large forehead. You could see the various minuscule cuts that dusted her otherwise rosy cheeks. You could see the bruised chin and the eye-bags and the cut lip that made up her otherwise very pretty face.

This is why she prefers the dark.

She tightened the thin blanket over her tiny form and doubled over. Her left hand gripped the flashlight, while her right hand held firmly onto a broken pen. She pressed the tip of the pen into the parchment, dragging it across; once, twice, three times.

Still no ink.

'_Damn. And I snatched this from that jackass Corporal too! Maybe Naruto could get me another one?_' she thought to herself. '_No way. That douche is even cheaper than Kakashi._'

After much swearing and much scratched apart parchment later, ink somewhat flowed from the broken pen.

The girl's eyes brightened mischievously. She tucked a rosette strand of hair behind her ear and began to write.

_We scavenged near the military dumping site today. Still not much to be found. Naruto found some leftover sandwiches in one of the bins and almost choked to death when he stuffed the thing down his throat. Lucky bastard. Can't blame him though, we were all starving, we haven't found any clean food for days. He offered the rest to me and Sasuke, nothing has ever tasted so heavenly. Who cares where it came from? It's edible. When Kakashi arrived, he made us stuff our fingers down our throats to vomit the crap back out. He says we can't risk anything when the Intruders are so desperate and with Operation Moon Eye already in progress. Sasuke says tha-_

_**-Clank-**_

Within seconds, her flashlight, notebook, and pen were under that loose floorboard and her practiced hand was gripped tightly around the butter-knife beneath her pillow. She had the blanket set loosely around her figure, her eyes tightly shut, her brows furrowed. When she heard the door open, she immediately rearranged her face to that of a person taken over by deep, blissful sleep.

She could hardly remember a time when she didn't have to pretend to sleep peacefully. Heck, she couldn't even remember the last time she slept for more than 3 hours. The sound of sleepy sighs and loud snores her roommates made were enough to make her green with envy.

The girl could, however, hear the person approaching amid the snoring. Judging from the deep breathing and the sound of the stranger's footsteps, the girl concurred that the stranger was a male. His feet were dancing across the floorboards, jumping over the other sleeping children and tip toeing between futon mattresses. He was practically racing his way towards her.

Her grip on the butter-knife tightened.

He climbed on top of her.

She grabbed his arm and pinned him beneath her, the butter knife dangling over his shadowed face.

He struggled and squirmed, obviously trying to throw her off of him. Finally the stranger fell still and let out a long sigh.

"Sakura. It's me."

The girl's fierceness hovered over them for a moment, like a bubble. And just like that, a pop of realization, and it was gone.

"I'm sorry Sasuke-kun, but you scared me!" the girl cried, hiding the butter knife back beneath her stiff pillow.

The boy scoffed at her, then proceeded to glare when she merely gave him a blank stare.

"Ch. Sakura. Off me, now." he demanded.

"But Sasuke-chan, you're so warm and comfy." she replied with a smile.

Sakura was playing this to her advantage. She knew how much Sasuke despised human contact, and how he avoided it at all costs.

Plus, he needed to pay for scaring the crap out of her as well.

"Hn. Fine." Sasuke replied coolly, before grabbing her by the waist and pulling her closer to him.

Sakura definitely did not expect that.

"Ugh! No you perve, get off!" Sakura half-yelled, half-whispered while throwing herself off of him. She sat as far away as she could from the boy, but as they were still on the same futon, he could easily lean over and their shoulders would brush. She pulled her knees to her chest and scowled at his bemused face.

The smirk he gave her was irritatingly infectious.

"You asked for it, Haruno."

By the time they were under her ratty blanket and the flashlight was turned back on, his smirk was plastered on her face too.

"Couldn't sleep?" she asked the raven haired boy. With the flashlight on, the dark circles under his eyes and the odd paleness of his skin wasn't too hard to notice.

"Hn. Nightmares."

"Operation Moon Eye?"

"No, Itachi."

"Oh."

While she contemplated what he just told her, Sasuke's long fingers reached over for Sakura's notebook. He quickly freed it from her grasp and scanned the page she had been scribbling on. Sakura, realizing her mistake too late, had gone a very deep shade of red. She was desperately attempting and yet failing to grab it back from him.

"Sasuke! That's private!"

Sasuke merely turned his back towards her, and flipped through the whole book. He would pause here and there to sigh dramatically and raise his eyebrows at her, making her even redder with embarrassment and fury. This seemed to only encourage the Uchiha to embarrass her further, for the sight of her flushed face never failed to amuse him.

He remembered a time when a red faced Sakura meant a tear stricken, snot covered Sakura. She would cry easily back then, back before the war and the trauma and the hurt.

Back before the deaths and the lost and the hopelessness.

He figured that now, with so much to grieve for, she just got tired of being sad and decided to be angry instead. She worked off her anger in her training sessions, she concentrated her pain into each blow she delivered. Sakura had put her feelings into a metal safe, screwed it shut, and watched as it floated away to the part of her mind that she had sworn to never visit.

Feelings are for the helpless.

Tears are for the weak.

A mind is for memorizing strategies, not for empty thoughts and daydreams.

A human is a warrior, not an emotion container.

But in spite of it all, Sakura managed to stay human. She managed to feel and yet be empty. She managed to hope and to have faith and yet, not to dream. She managed to stay a child, and yet grow up.

Sasuke still wasn't sure wether this was to be considered an improvement.

"Sasuke, please."

"No."

"Bastard. You give it back right now!"

"Make me."

_**-Thud-**_

Sakura held the notebook above her head in triumph, while Sasuke used the flashlight to examine the fresh blue bruise on his shoulder; the result of contact with Sakura's iron fist.

Definitely not an improvement at all.

"If you wanna read it so badly, you could have asked, Sasuke-kun," said Sakura as she picked up her pen and continued to write.

Sasuke watched her hand move across the parchment, her words dancing under the brightness of the flashlight. He spotted his name a couple of times, each scrawled '_Sasuke'_ was like a friendly wave, a reminder that this girl was in fact more than a warrior, that she was his friend, that she cared enough to include him and her friends in this childish documentation about her daily life and meaningless things; as if all of this would be something she'd want to look back on in the future.

He couldn't explain what he felt at that moment, under the ratty blanket with her. If he would compare it to another feeling, he'd say it felt as if he was feeling… grateful.

"You're writing about the mission today," he stated while fingering the peeling paint that made up the dirty walls next to her futon.

"Yes. And you. And that thing you said about survival of the fittest. Do you really think the government is considering killing off Area 35/139E?"

"Hn."

"But the military base here is one of the best on Planet 3!"

"Don't you mean Earth?"

"Sasuke, we don't know wether that legend Kakashi told us is true."

"His story checks out. Here, I found this in the Document Chamber."

Sasuke gestured to his pocket, and Sakura's eyes widened with childish delight.

The boy reached into the hand stitched pocket, (which was sewn into his cotton pants to hide the large hole that Naruto made) and took out two thin pieces of metal, which were held together by tubes filled with white liquid.

He extended the tubes, the white liquid becoming more opaque as he did so. Soon the small metal resembled a glowing, hollow cube. Sakura handed him the flashlight, and moved closer to him.

"Go on, then."

Sasuke gingerly placed the flashlight beneath the cube, shining the light on the underside of the prism.

Instantly, a large holographic globe appeared from the cube. It filled the space between them, lighting up the thin blanket over their heads. As they moved further away from each other beneath the blanket, the hologram expanded.

"I can't believe this hologram transmitter still works. Oh, wow. Is that Planet 3?" asked Sakura in disbelief, turning her head to face Sasuke.

"Earth," he corrected her. "Before the war."

The image before them was breathtaking. The cube was bobbing up and down , turning slightly to the left each time it hit the glass lens of the flashlight. The hologram seemed lifelike, it was turning slowly before the two children, it's colours reflecting off of their awed faces.

Sakura could see the rocky textures of the mountains, the green lands surprisingly not littered with debris. She could see actual living trees; rich with fruits and green leaves. She could see blue ocean, clearer than ever, with water flowing calmly in some places and crashing down as waves in others. She could see the beautiful underwater metropolis, made up of coral and colorful sea creatures; many of which have been extinct for years.

A large blue fish leaped out of the water, before diving back in. She recognized it from her old 'Fables and Myths' storybook. It was a white whale.

She could see the tiny people walking freely, greeting each other, giving friendly waves. None of them were wearing oxygen masks.

"Sasuke, what's that white floaty thing?" she asked.

The boy furrowed his brows, squinting at the colorless airy liquid she was gesturing to. It floated gracefully, lacing the Planet's blue sky.

"Clouds," he replied confidently.

"Aren't clouds brown?"

"Not back then, no."

"It's beautiful."

"Hn."

Sakura reached out for the globe, her approach gentle and slow, almost as if she was afraid she would scare it away. She attempted to stroke the ocean, but her fingers just passed through the hologram. She held her hand there for a moment before retracting it back and sighing.

"Look," Sasuke said, attempting to cheer Sakura back up. He pointed to a spot on the hologram. "Area 35/139E."

"No it isn't, it says T-O-K-Y-O. Tokkie-yo. Tokyo..." Sakura fell silent for a moment. Then suddenly, she gasped sharply.

Sasuke raised his eyebrow at her, urging her to finish her thought.

"TOKYO!" Sakura exclaimed, as if the five-letter word was the answer to all their problems.

"...Aa."

"Don't you see Sasuke?" she started, gesturing wildly to the holographic globe. "Remember what Kakashi told us? Before the war started, and all the land stealing, each Continent had an actual name. There was uhm, Americana? America. That's where North and South are now, I think. Africa, Australia and Earlobe? Eurode. Uh…"

"Europe?"

"Yes, thank you Sasuke-kun. Europe. And last but not least, Asia. That's where Area 35/139E is located."

"You mean, Land N/EH?"

"Yup, Asia was what Land N/EH was called back then. And back then there were countries in the continents, states in the countries, cities, towns, and villages in the states. Each Area had it's own distinct name and identity. Back then, land was for living on, for raising families, for sharing, for walking on. Not for taking, like it is now."

The two children fell silent, each of them deep in thought. The globe and the hologram transmitter continued to spin before them, until the flashlight beneath it flickered, and then it was gone, and the two were left in the dark.

Sakura came out from under the blanket and gingerly pulled it off of Sasuke's head. Then, she stretched her arms high above her head.

"I think, I'll sleep now," she said between stifled yawns. She rested her head on the stiff pillow snuggled into the blanket for warmth.

"Sakura…"

Sakura turned to look at Sasuke who had a somewhat sheepish look on his face, and smiled.

"Don't I always say yes?" she asked him, gesturing to the spot next to her on the futon.

He climbed in next to her, and shut his eyes tight.

"Goodnight Sasuke-kun."

"Hn."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Here it is guys. The first chapter. The idea popped into my mind after watching a war movie, and to be truthful I've always been attracted to the idea of a third world war. Like, what will happen to the human race now? I know, I know, DEPRESSING THOOOOOUGHTS. So anyway, leave a review will you? I'm really trying to improve my writing skills, so any constructive criticism will be much appreciated. ARIGATOU. :)_


	2. The Hero's Failure

He could still feel the blood on his face.

Each drop brought warmth and stickiness with it.

Each drop also brought pain.

And fear.

He remembered running for his life, seeing people around him do the same, their faces red with determination, so alive one moment;

_Crack_

And so still the next.

...

He remembers feeling so alone.

So lost.

He remembers everything.

That's the thing isn't it?

You just can't forget these things.

* * *

><p><em>And he never did.<em>

_"_

_I s a n y b o d y t h e r e?_

_Canyouhearme?_

_C a n' t y o u h e a r m e?_

_"_

_Dear God, if you're there, please, get me the fuck out of this place._

P l e a s e d o n' t k i l l m e.

* * *

><p><strong>~OPERATION SHINOBI: EMOTION CONTAINERS~<strong>

C h a p t e r 2 : T h e H e r o' s F a i l u r e .

* * *

><p>His adolescent years were a blur.<p>

There were hazy patches of green and laughter permanently drilled into his mind. So those were his memories before the war.

Green.

And laughter.

Funny how the whole concept of peace can be summed up into two words. Two very simple words.

Peace was not simple, but neither was war.

He was not a simple boy.

He was 'General Minato's boy', the blond, whiskered, smiley baby who was set on a journey to follow his father's rather impossible footsteps the moment he entered the world.

But when his father got blown up, as pieces of the once perfect man lay scattered upon the blood soaked earth, the hopes of millions broke apart with him.

They turned to the last remaining option, and turned the blond boy into their scapegoat. Who-ever-his-name-was, was to lead, was to save the war. The four year old must step-up and take his place amongst the gods and bring them the peace they've searched so hungrily for.

...

And then he was Hero's Failure. Simply because he had not achieved what was intended of him. Simply because he merely did what other children his age were supposed to do during war.

Absolutely nothing.

But to a small number of people, he was Uzumaki Naruto, the boy who never gives up. These people believed in him, they truly believed he would lead them to their victory using his own path. They believed he would not be only a Hero's Son, but a Hero to his own right.

He watched them die as he hid in a broom cupboard, doing what he does best.

Nothing.

...

It was a Monday.

It was in the afternoon, during break.

It was in school. The only place that was not supposed to be a war-zone.

It was a boy in a mask who brought with him five M2 Machine Guns, a boy barely old enough to drive.

It was all the people he had ever cared about, gone with the pull of a trigger.

* * *

><p><em>It was almost two, and a blond boy sat on a wobbly stool in the middle of the makeshift cafeteria. Yes, there was war going on, but even that wouldn't be able to stop the determined hold of education. Naruto sighed as he turned his stool around, and around, and around.<em>

_He hated school. _

_He did love, however, the people he got to meet in school._

_Thinking just wasn't his thing. He preferred to solve his problems with his fists, not his brains. _

_He patted his hair down, trying to make it lay flat. _

_It began with a huge 'crack', and for an eternity, silence fell over each and everyone in the tiny school._

_Then Naruto saw Tameyoshi Akamatsu staggering towards him. Tameyoshi; who had taken up two part-time jobs to help his father keep food on the table, Tameyoshi; who always took the time to flash Naruto a smile when he was feeling down. Tameyoshi; the blue-eyed, twelve year old boy who adored his baby sister. _

_He saw Tameyoshi with blood oozing from his chest, fall to the ground._

_He never got up again._

_Then, all hell-broke loose._

_Children were running for cover, screams of terror erupting everywhere. Occasionally a loud crack could be heard over all the noise; bringing with it the whisper of a horrifying thump as cold, still bodies hit the ground in a broken heap._

_..._

_CRACK_

_Naruto saw 14 year old Namie; the girl with all the right answers, fall, face first. Her expression was frozen, she was dead before she hit the ground, she didn't even have time to close her eyes._

_..._

_CRACK_

_Akaike, 10, knelt before her twin brother, tears and snot running down her blood splattered face, she was screaming, begging him to open his eyes. Naruto shut his eyes tight as her chest exploded with blood, and before she knew it, she was reunited with her twin in eternity._

_..._

_CRACK_

_The school janitor who had come out of a tiny classroom to see what the noise was about, fell to his knees with the pull of a trigger. The school janitor, who had three kids and a wife._

_..._

_CRACK_

_Ichigo, 9 years old. He stopped his mad dash for survival to help drag an injured friend out of the way. Ichigo, who dreamt of being a hero, who died fulfilling that dream._

_..._

_CRACK_

_Naruto had to dive for cover as Fujimaro's head exploded, splattering the hallway with blood. He was fifteen._

_..._

_CRACK_

_CRACK_

_CRACK_

_..._

_Naruto had run faster than he ever had in his life._

_He hid in a small broom cupboard right in the middle of the hallway. He could hear the shooter enter classrooms, filled with terrified students. He could hear the sounds of souls ripped away from bodies with each pull of the trigger. _

_Then, there was the loudest silence he had ever heard._

_It lasted for an eternity._

_It hung over him, like a veil. Concealing the horrors that had just unfolded before his very eyes. Then, suddenly, there were cries for help._

_Wonderful, loud, alive, cries._

_He remembered then, tearing open the cupboard door and puling a person inside with him. He didn't care who it was at the moment, he just wanted someone to hold, someone to share this moment in his life with. He wanted to gain something out of this._

_He needed to make sure at least one person came out alive._

_Said person, was a frail, pale, tear-stricken girl. She had short, blue-black hair, that stuck up in clumps where blood had hit. Her eyes were wide and wet, and lovely lavender. _

_He held her as she cried, and she held him. She was so unbelievably soft, and warm, and Naruto wished they could lay there forever, a tangle of scarred, blood splattered limbs and tears._

* * *

><p>It would be 5 hours before they were found.<p>

It would be 3 days before Naruto could fully scrub himself clean of the stench of dry blood.

It would be 6 months before each and every piece of human flesh and bones, would be sorted out and sent back to their respective families.

It would be an eternity before Naruto would be able to forget.

...

But according to Lady Tsunade, the Surgeon General of The Japanese Army, he would forget about it very, very soon, with the help of the Counselors.

"It will pass Naruto, you'll see."

"Shut the fuck up with the crap, Granny Tsunade! We're just kids!"

And that's why Naruto, and the rest of the Survivors were given their own division and training program.

They were split into groups of three, each cell leaded by a ANBU Corp Officer.

The logic here being that if these 30 children can survive a raw, school shoot-out, they'd be able to fight in the Third World War.

And thus, Uzumaki Naruto was now a pig well fed and well groomed, raised for slaughter.

But so were Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke, the two children who got stuck in the same three-man cell as Uzumaki Naruto. The two children who taught Naruto once again, that it is dangerous to love, to care for others.

The two children who pretended to be dead, who laid still, beneath the corpses of their friends and classmates to survive.

The two children who functioned as one body, the two who seemed so attached to each other, it made Naruto green with envy.

The two children that Naruto loved and yet hated, envied and yet admired, the two children who helped him feel once again.

If you feel, you get hurt.

Rule 23# A soldier must never show his feelings.

Ever.

...

Naruto never was good at following rules anyway.

_You better run, better run, faster than my gun._


	3. The Silent Avenger

_W e' r e a l o n e._

"

S o m e b o d y ?

_Anybody?_

_P l e a s e.  
><em>_  
><em>

"

_W e h a v e e a c h o t h e r._

_Dear God, I volunteer. Please, don't take her away from me._

I n e e d h e r h e r e.

* * *

><p><strong>~OPERATION SHINOBI: EMOTION CONTAINERS~<strong>

C h a p t e r 3 : T h e S i l e n t A v e n g e r (s).

His was a sob story to last the century.

Born into a family of militants, raised to go by the book, to live within the lines, to think inside the box.

Otou-san was a respected arms man and brought home a sufficient income. What he did not bring home was the patience, softness, and love that his two sons so desperately needed.

Oka-chan was a mail-order bride, who had dreams of becoming a dancer, a poet, a professional go-cart driver. She had waist length black hair and soft ivory hands. Hands that forever touched the hearts of her two sons. Hearts that mended boo-boos and wiped away tears. Hands that often held their tear-stricken faces, hands that were often cupped around their eagerly perked-up ears.

_"Don't mind your father, Itachi. He's just a bit upset at the moment. Now stop your crying Sasuke, you silly, brave boy."_

Then she would scoop them up in her arms and shower them with kisses. Itachi would get raspberries blown across his stomach, and he would kick and laugh and demand to be released. Then Oka-chan would pull on Sasuke's tiny fists, and twirl him in circles. They would do this for what seemed to be blessed eternity, a never ending dance of toe-stepping hilarity, of laughter, of love, of mother and son.

Sasuke, as a boy, would often wonder how his mother could be so tolerant and strong, but so kind and loving.

He thought of her as a a bird bound by it's cage. It dared to dream of the world around it, but never to demand release, never to take flight and explore.

He and his Nee-san would catch her in her most vulnerable moments. They'd notice the way her eyes glazed over with sad nostalgia, the way she'd stare into the sky, her shoulders pushed back, her chest facing the wind.

They noticed the way the wind tugged at her long hair with unfathomable familiarity, and watched as it twirled around her bare feet. They could almost see the way it tugged at her heartstrings, at her memories.

Itachi used to tell Sasuke, in moments like these, that their mother was a dreamer, bounded by a husband and his responsibilities. And of course, Sasuke, being the hopeless romantic that he secretly was, took this newfound piece of fiction so awe-worthy.

But as he got older, he discovered that this made up romance had a sad reality.

The young Uchiha would soon find that moments like these would be the most memorable to him. The most intriguing. The most painful.

Because as her still body lay upon his father's mangled corpse, he couldn't help but remember the poor woman that could only dream from her cage, that could only watch as others soared above her.

He ran.

He ran for his life.

And for his brother's.

But he was too young, he was too weak.

He had failed.

And as Itachi took off, with the blood of his parents still dripping off of his calloused hands, the bloodied katana used for unjustified murder still strapped to his retreating back, Sasuke had a strange sense of peace and horror erupt from his broken heart.

His mother was now free.

But she was also, gone.

The sky broke, and raindrops fell from high above. They soaked his bloodstained clothes and his dark mess of hair.

They clung to his ivory skin, the coldness seeping through his veins, his bones, his heavy heart.

He felt a part of him disappear as well.

* * *

><p>...<p>

"It's raining."

And suddenly, he found himself shielded from the heavy rainfall. He turned in sudden realization, and found himself staring into a very large, very green eye.

_Blink._

"You'll catch a cold, silly. Want me to walk you home?"

Said eye belonged to a tiny, beaming face; framed by locks of pink hair. It was a young girl, not much younger than he was. She had both hands gripped around a large, red umbrella. The sheer weight of the umbrella seemed to be too much for her tiny form, as she was swaying slightly, hopping from one foot to the other.

She was hurt.

Hurt very badly, he thought. She had various cuts and bruises running up and down her fair skin, some covered by colorful bandages, others dressed with lengths of white wire gauze. The most noticeable injury however, was her left eye.

While her right eye was bright and green and widened with curiosity, her left eye was hidden by a stained white cloth, held in place by criss-cross of white (medical tape).

She was dreamlike. Unreal.

In her beat-up state, eyepatch, and oversized vest and shorts, she gave Sasuke the impression of a battle-worn, pirate-warrior-fairy-princess.

Beautiful.

* * *

><p>…<p>

The raindrops fell harder upon the girl's red umbrella.

"Are you lost?" she yelled, over the wind.

"No," he said quietly.

"Where's your family?" she whispered. Her eye had a glazed, worried look to it, almost as if she knew his answer.

…

…

"Gone."

…

…

The girl gave him a slow, toothy smile. Then, she took his hand, and led him down the opposite street, away from where he had came, away from his home, away from his dead parents.

Away from his past life.

"I'm Haruno Sakura."

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"Are we friends now?"

"Aa."

"Good."

"…"

"Oh, and Sasuke?"

"Hn?"

…

"Mine too."

* * *

><p>The pair had walked for miles and miles, nipping into various fast-food joints to scour for edible half-eaten burgers and cold soggy fries. Their tiny feet marched upon the uneven ground in a choreographed rhythm. They put one foot in front of the other, and carried onwards.<p>

_Left._

_Right._

_Left._

_Right._

And when rainfall enveloped their tired bones and wetness clung to their skin, they trust their palms upwards and drank from their cupped hands. At one point, Sasuke had pondered the exact length of their journey, and proceeded to share his thoughts with the bouncing rosette beside him.

"Sakura…"

She stopped her skipping and turned to face him.

"Yes, Sasuke-kun?"

"How much further?"

The girl abruptly stopped walking and raised a hand to her chin. From behind her, Sasuke had to steady himself, as to make sure he did not topple over the tiny girl and crush her.

"Do you know where were going?" Sakura asked, raising her brows at him.

His eyes widened in surprise.

"I was following you!" he exclaimed in a rather un-Uchiha fashion before crossing his arms over his chest. "Tch."

"So…," she took his hand in hers and dragged him forward, continuing their march. "We're lost huh?"

"…"

"Do you know what this means?" she flashed him a cheeky grin.

"…"

"It means we're free! We can start over, where no one knows our names, and our story."

"… you're an idiot."

"Mou, don't be so mean Sasuke!" she tugged on his right arm, forcing him to spin around to face her.

"I'm stating the truth."

She took hold of his other hand and they spun around in dizzying circles, she was giggling, he was scowling.

They spun in the center of the cobble webbed street, the buildings surrounding them turning into a grayish blur.

There were people by the street; some wearing oxygen masks, who had paused to watch them, the two children spinning in circles. They listened to the girl's laughter, and smiled at the boy's embarrassed frown. The sight brought smiles to the faces of the people of the small village, and raised hope within their hearts.

A frail blonde girl glanced at them from her mother's flower stall, and shook her head at their immaturity. A young solider watched them from a broken shop-window, and drew his dark brows together, deep in thought. He took to the streets and made his way towards them, and as he approached, Sasuke and Sakura broke apart, both stumbling from the dizziness, blinking profusely as the world spun around them.

"Hey, kids. Where are your parents?" the soldier asked them, crouching down to meet them at eye level.

Sasuke had narrowed his eyes at the man's question, and instinctively put himself in front of Sakura, spreading out his left hand to make sure she stayed behind him.

"What is it to you?" the Uchiha asked.

Sakura glanced at the man from behind Sasuke's shoulders. "What happened to you, mister?" she raised her chin towards the man's head, indicating the long scar that ran sideways across his face, just below his eyes.

"I could ask you the same thing," the man replied, pointing to Sakura's bandaged eye.

He then reached into his front shirt pocket and pulled out a clear, thin piece of glass. At his touch, an image appeared upon the glass, and a clear female voice spoke.

"_Identification affirmed. Iruka Umino , 22 years old__, Member of the Konoha Division of Area 35/139E for The Japanese Army of Land N/EH. Experience level, Chunnin. Civil Duty, Teacher. Specializes in training of new recruits and short-distance combat. Handicap, none. Highest Level of Achievements, Graduate of Konoha's Military Academy; First Class, Golden Medal of Honour for Service Served in Land N/EH. Family, none."_

After it's short speech, the thin glass grew silent and turned clear once more.

"You're a teacher," Sasuke stated with certainty.

"We have no family either," said Sakura quietly, looking at her feet. Her shoulders heaved and a small cry escaped her lips.

She was crying.

Sasuke was _not_ pleased.

"Stop it," he snapped.

The boy's rude outburst just made Sakura sob harder.

"Sakura…" Sasuke didn't mean to make her upset. He simply got annoyed at her tears. He was annoyed at what her crying did to him.

It made him feel helpless.

Iruka watched the exchange between the two children and smiled softly. He reached out for Sakura, but Sasuke shoved his arm away, glaring at him from beneath his thick eyelashes. "Don't," the boy growled.

"You need help," Iruka slowly stated.

"We don't need anything. We have each other," the boy snapped.

Sakura's sobs we're getting louder. Her shoulders shook and her tiny hands were balled into pulsing fists. The bandage on her left eye was soaked. Sasuke held onto her shoulder to steady her small form, and held out his right arm to her. She gripped onto his sleeve and used the soft fabric to wipe at her red face. The Uchiha would have cringed, but as guilt was eating at his pride, he said nothing.

"Having each other isn't good enough," said Iruka softly. "Come with me, we'll get you some shelter and some food, perhaps even a place in the local school."

The Uchiha's stubbornness was apparent. He shook his head furiously, still refusing help from the soldier. Suddenly a low growl erupted from the crying rosette beside him, and both boy and man turned to stare.

"I…I-I'm sorry, that was my stomach, I'm just really hungry," she cried between sobs.

"I'll take that as permission to save you two from the streets," said Iruka, picking Sakura up gently. "Don't worry, I won't hurt her," he assured the onyx-eyed boy that was glaring daggers at him.

They then headed north towards the community center that housed tens of other orphans, Sakura fast asleep on Iruka's back, and Sasuke dragging his feet alongside them. Upon their arrival at the three-storied building, two medics tended to Sakura's left eye, and guaranteed that her sight would return to normal in two weeks.

From that day onwards, home, to Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura, would be the third floor of the community center.

* * *

><p>Everything was almost turning back to normal. They even had a healthy routine going on.<p>

They were awake by 7 a.m, and dressed and scarcely fed by 8.30. Then, they walked 7 blocks downhill (through the chrome tunnel that protected them from any surprise bomb attacks) to the tiny two-story shop lot that was their school. Classes would begin at 9 in the morning and end at 3.30 in the afternoon.

Then, Sasuke and Sakura would walk back to the community center, cutting through abandoned battlefields; shrouded by acres of corn-stalks, passing bombed-down houses, ducking in and out of alleyways. They'd stop by the Area 35/139E Army Base on their way back to pick up whatever clean food Iruka had managed to find for their lunch, and then headed straight home.

Homework was completed by 5 in the evening. Sakura would then head out to play with Ino; the gardener's daughter, out in the plant-filled glass-dome that was the front yard. Sasuke would be left to think quietly ("It's not thinking, it's being emo," Sakura had once told him) in the peaceful confides of the small Library Chamber on the second-floor. (The Uchiha would never admit it out loud, but he found these short periods of solitude without Sakura rather… lonely.)

Dinner was held at a long, rickety, wooden table on the first-floor, with the 44 other occupants of the community center. They ate whatever was given to them. Most of the time, they had corn soup. On rare, special occasions, the caretakers would make sour apple pie and serve it with tasteless, cold tea. Rare occasions like these, were moments of bliss for the underfed children.

Sometimes, when food was particularly scarce, they had nothing.

What was definite however, was the good times they _did_ have at the dinner table. No matter what, they were always the 44 children, bounded by grief and new-beginnings. No matter what, they always had each other.

_"Don't hog the tomatoes, Sasuke!"_

* * *

><p>That all changed on Monday, October 11th.<p>

That day, only 12 orphaned children returned to the community center.

That day, 66 children were killed in a school shooting. 32 among them, were orphans.

32 among them, were the children that called the community center their home. 32 among them, were the kids Sasuke and Sakura shared their dinner with.

That day, when Sasuke heard the first _crack_, he had run to Sakura's class, screaming at everybody to get out. He had grabbed her by her collar and dragged her across the hallway, taking cover behind the abandoned cabinets that were used as lockers by the students, ducking each time a shot was fired.

Sasuke had led her to a small low-ceilinged room filled with mismatched bookcases that functioned as a school library. They had hid beneath a table with 10 other students, not daring to breathe lest it lead the shooter to their hiding place.

Two teachers stood guard at the doorway, one of them placing a distressed emergency call to the Army Base while the other stood silently, his pupils darting from the left to the right, beads of cold sweat running down his forehead.

Sasuke couldn't remember much after that. He recalled squeezing the hand of a crying Sakura, assuring her that everything was going to be okay, that they would make it. He remembered a loud explosion coming from the doorway, and smoke filling up the room.

He remembered shoots being fired at random.

He remembered blood.

He remembered clinging onto Sakura's tiny form, praying so hard for their survival, because that was all he could do at that point.

Pray.

He also remembered a warm, oozing sensation and numbness starting at his right temple, and spreading to his entire body.

Then everything went black.

The next thing he remembered, was waking up to the stench of blood and sweat, the weight of 5 bodies, pressing upon his exhausted form.

He saw from the corner of his eyes, a flash of pink lying very, very, still beneath three equally lifeless children.

Sasuke couldn't help it. He didn't even know what was happening before a sense of ego-nakedness took hold of his shaking form.

He let a strangled sound escape from his dry throat, and cried.

Tearfully, he reached out for her hand, giving it a squeeze.

_Please don't be dead. Please, please, please…_

_..._

_..._

_..._

_Please._

_..._

She squeezed back.

* * *

><p>5 hours later, when army personnel came to look for survivors, they found the two children in the library beneath several bodies, fingers entwined, eyes glued shut.<p>

They were slipping in and out of conciousness, and the boy had a bullet in his head, but they were miraculously, alive.

"Thank god they're all right."

* * *

><p>Iruka was the one who drove the surviving children to the community center to be questioned and treated for their injuries. As he maneuvered the large transportation truck across the bumpy roads, he had explained softly to Sasuke and Sakura; who we're seated closest to him, that many of their housemates would not be returning home.<p>

Sasuke rested his bandaged head upon Sakura's with a sigh, clearly affected by what Iruka had just said. Sakura simply pressed her head deeper into Sasuke's neck, pulling the blanket tighter around both of their shaking forms. She then peered at the soldier beneath her wet eyelashes, before asking in a hoarse, tired voice, "But_, why_?"

Iruka's jaw tightened. As a soldier, he had never believed in fabricating the truth. But how could he tell two 9 year-olds that the 32 children who were supposed to be tucking into sour apple pie and cold tea together with them tonight, were still at school; lying in pools of blood with holes in their heads?

He cannot,

He should not,

He must not.

"They're in Heaven now, Sakura. They're gone."

* * *

><p><em>1 week later<em>

"_NO," _Sakura spat. She let out a long mangled cry, screaming the single syllable over and over again.

Hands held her arms firmly, raising her off of the ground; holding her upside down. She was struggling and kicking, hot, angry tears running down her face.

Lady Tsunade watched the sight before her, amused. The rosette struggling before her was much tinier than the rest of her peers, but it took a handful of heavily-trained guardsmen to hold her down.

"**I WILL NOT, STA**_-LET ME GO YOU OVERGROWN PIG, LET ME GO!_" the girl shrieked, her face red with obvious frustration, as she trust her feet in to the air. She managed to kick one of the guards in the face; the man threw himself backwards in discomfort and released the girl's leg, which was being frantically kicked about, in search for another victim.

The door burst open and another equally loud cry was heard.

"OOOOOOI, LET GO OF SAKURA-CHAN YOU BASTARDS!" a flash of blonde flew across the room and latched itself onto a guard's right leg. Tsunade watched in horror as the whiskered child opened his mouth wide and took a bite of the guard's right shin.

"_ARRRRGH_! The little creep bit me!"

Another figure stood at the door, watching the chaos ensue through narrowed onyx eyes. His hands were balled into fists at his sides, and a vein on his forehead was pulsing in sheer annoyance.

_"Let. Her. Go."_

The boy spoke so quietly, it was a surprise he could be heard over the commotion. But his voice held such authority and arrogance, it drew every head towards him, and made everyone in the room pause in their tracks. Sakura stopped in her struggle and hung limply from the hands that gripped her feet, her eyes wide.

"Uchiha Sasuke. I can't say I'm not surprised. Don't worry, Sakura over here is just upset over the fact that she has not been placed into the same cell as the two of you. However-" Tsunade did not manage to complete her sentence. The Uchiha had raised an unclenched hand, silencing her.

The Surgeon General sighed sharply. "Do you wish to speak, Uchiha?" she demanded.

"We will be in the same cell," the boy said. It was an order, not an option.

"And why is that?" Tsunade snapped.

"Because I say so."

"Teme, you can't just say, 'because I say so'," Naruto exclaimed, rolling his blue eyes. "AND LET HER GO THIS INSTANT," he yelled, clinging tighter to the guard's right leg.

Tsunade raised her hand, and the guards set Sakura on her feet, and retired their hold. The rosette immediately went to stand beside Sasuke, dragging Naruto along.

"Did they hurt you?" the Uchiha asked, turning to face her beaming face.

"N…n-never better!" Sakura drew out, clutching at her sides and struggling for breath.

"You will let her into the same cell as me and Naruto," Sasuke started, whipping his head to face Tsunade. "Sakura is emotionally traumatized. She requires me to be with her at all costs."

Tsunade glared at the Uchiha.

Then, she smirked.

"And if I say no?"

Sasuke scowled. "That is not an option."

_Clever, clever boy._

"Very well," Tsunade sighed, as she ran a finger over a large thin glass that hung behind her. It lit up at her touch, and the three children found themselves staring at their mirror images, which were placed side-by-side against a grey background. Beneath these images we're their names, scrawled in their own handwriting. An image of a silver-haired man sporting a dark blue mask appeared from the corner of the screen, and took it's place upon the grey background; beside the three children.

Naruto opened his mouth to ask a question, but he was cut off by Tsunade's stern glare.

"Based on what I've seen today, I can concur that you three would make a… sustainable trio. However, none of this cockiness will be stood for after this meeting. From this moment on, I make the orders. Understand, Uchiha?" Tsunade asked, her voice laced with firm, unquestionable authority.

"Yes ma'am," Sasuke said quietly, a slow smirk spreading across his face.

Naruto and Sakura exchanged smug grins before turning to their black-haired comrade. Naruto stuck his tongue out at the Uchiha, and Sakura caught his eye and winked.

"Before I dismiss you three…" Tsunade snapped, not missing the looks the three children had exchanged. "Miss Haruno, I need your, shall we say, approval?"

Sakura quietly took hold of the two boy's hands. She then raised her head and spoke directly to Tsunade, her voice strained, but not breaking eye-contact.

"I need them just as much as they need me."

The Surgeon General smiled.

"Dismissed."

_You've got a friend in me. Oh, you've got a friend in me..._

* * *

><p><em>AN: This is probably the longest chapter yet. I hope you guys enjoy your treat, because I might not update for two weeks or so, as the evil hold of education is drowning me is homework and exams. So until then, see ya! :D_


	4. The Intruders

_T i m e s t a n d s s t i l l._

_"_

_How to be brave?_

_H o w t o l o v e w h e n I' m a f r a i d t o f a l l?"_

"

_Y o u d o n't ._

_Dear God, save these people, for I am a coward. Save them, for I cannot._

_"That's why you don't need love."_

* * *

><p><strong>~OPERATION SHINOBI: EMOTION CONTAINERS~<strong>

C h a p t e r 4 : T h e I n t r u d e r (s).

* * *

><p>Haruno Sakura had the young men of the Area 35139E Army Base falling at her feet. The 16 year-old would often be stopped at the hallways or pulled aside during missions by dashing young soldiers with non-negotiable wants and needs.

Young men with no choice but to lay their life on the line for their countries often had issues coming to terms with the phrases 'moral' and 'chilvary'. These young men are the reason that a certain rosette would often find her self pinned against walls, or trapped in tight corners with rough hands in a vice like grip around hers, while dry lips whisper filthy nothingness into her ears.

And in times like these, Sakura would position her knee directly in front of her perpetrator's groin area, and prepare herself for the strike, and the satisfying yells and cussing that would surely come right after.

But it would never come to that.

Because watching closely, slumped against the opposite wall or crouched at the end of each corner was Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto, their veins pulsing with rage and fists curled tightly at their sides.

And once these guilty men caught sight of the silhouettes watching them from afar, it would already be too late.

Flesh would have contacted with flesh in a satisfying thump and before the perpetrators could even cry out; their world would be nothing but angry onyx eyes and blazing blue irises that were screaming silently at them, telling them to run.

And so they did.

Naruto watched as the stocky man ran across the dry uneven plot of land that was the army base, and took pride in the fact that the retreating figure did not dare turn around even once.

The blond then arranged his tan arms behind his head and turned to look at his two companions, his chapped lips curled into an unsatisfied pout.

Naruto was about to let a rather exasperated "Sakura-chaaaan!" slip from between his lips. But to his dismay, the stoic Uchiha beside him beat him to it.

Sasuke was facing Sakura, their eyes locked in a silent argument. His eyes were narrowed at her in anger, his onyx irises burning, brows furrowed. Naruto knew that look very well.

_What do you think you're doing?_

The blonde haired idiot could almost hear the soundless blame that those onyx eyes emitted.

Sakura eye's countered rather huffily. Her emerald orbs were wide with disbelief, but the small frown forming between her pink brows showed how angry she really was at Sasuke's accusation.

_It wasn't my fault! He forced himself onto me!_

Onyx eyes widened slightly, blazing with stubborness, refusing to accept defeat. Emerald eyes narrowed with contempt.

_It's your fault because you're so pretty._

_No, it is not. What do expect me to do? Cut my face up?_

Naruto was pretty sure that Sasuke would never ever, in his entire life, let Sakura know that he thought of her as pretty. It would be add a massive dent to the Uchiha's pride, and Naruto himself would not let his rival live down his moment of weakness. But as Naruto quietly interpreted his two comrades equally quiet arguement,he couldn't help but smile at the truth those onyx eyes held.

Sakura was easily one of the prettiest girls Naruto had ever met. She had thick, pouty lips that were constantly curved upwards in a kind smile. And hidden beneath her thick lashes were large green eyes that had once looked somewhat awkward upon her tiny, hollow face, but had proven themselves as valueble assets as her face filled out with age.

She had grown gracefully, and was now referred to as a beautiful young lady. The subtle curves that had grown upon her thin form in all the right places are regarded as proof of the end of her innocence.

At the ripe age of sixteen, many thought her a fresh face regardless of the thin scars scattered across her forehead and high cheekbones. Her various cuts and bruises marked her as a fighter, as someone who actually stands on her own two feet and fights for what she believes in. Someone untouchable. Someone out of your league.

The overall effect was incredibly sexy.

And that adorable nose of hers.

_Oh god, her nose._

"Cute as a fucking button", Kiba would say.

Who knew that noses could be such a turn on?

Apparently, Uchiha Sasuke did.

And he did not approve of the rest of his fellow comrades reveling in this new-found piece of knowledge.

To others, his anger at his fellow comrades for drooling whenever Sakura walked past could be easily interpreted as jealousy.

But Naruto knew better.

It was extreme jealousy.

The Uchiha would not admit to accusations of secret love and wet dreams, obviously. He blamed his anger on the fact that soldiers should be working hard on defending the country, not on getting into a certain rosette's pants.

And so, due the Uchiha's anger and obsessiveness, he would often trail Sakura from behind, determined on beheading all the men who let their gazes linger on her admittedly curvy form. Naruto soon came to accompany him after a rather nasty incident that left the Uchiha on a two week suspension from missions and the tall red-headed man whom he attacked bed-ridden with two broken ribs, a sprained foot and several broken fingers.

And all the poor man had said was, "I'd tap that."

It was now a common sight for all the inhabitants of the base. Naruto happily trailing after Sasuke as he angrily trailed after Sakura.

The blonde did not mind the hours spent following Sakura as she went about her day. After all, she was _his_ Sakura-chan.

"So guys-" Naruto started as he forced the two figures before him to end their glaring contest, placing one tanned arm around Sasuke's broad shoulders and the other upon Sakura's long pink locks. "-ready for the Chunnin exams?"

That certainly caught their attention.

Sakura let a smug grin settle on her face. "The question is Naruto, are you ready? Have you forgotten that I'm already a Chunnin?"

Naruto scoffed, waving his hand feverishly in the air. "You were just lucky the Chunnin exams weren't practical last year. Anybody could answer some stupid questions on a Screan," the blonde haired was now flexing his muscles before his two comrades. "It takes a real man to fight for his Chunnin title!"

It was Sakura's turn to scoff. "Oh, so, a real man smashes his Screan to bits in frustration as well? If that was so, you're one heck of a man Naruto!"

Naruto winced at the memory of last year's Chunnin exams. He hadn't studied at all, for he was sure the assesment would be practical, he was so sure that he was to use his fists and not his head. So, when his General handed out thin pieces of glass that lighted up at their touch, known as Screans, he'd taken one look at Question 1

_-In the event that a soldier dies in service abroad, the Ministry of Defence will endeavour to repatriate his or her body. What are the general terms that apply?_-

and threw the Screan to the other side of the examination tent, satisfied as it smashed to pieces.

His General was not amused.

Naruto had failed that year. This did not come as a surprise to many, as everyone knew of the knuklehead's knuckleheaded-ness. What did surprise the young soldiers was that Uchiha Sasuke had failed as well.

Said Uchiha stood between his 'friends', scowling at their loud bickering. A small frown formed between his brows at the bitter memory of failure. He didn't know what had gone wrong. He was so confident he would pass. Heck, he thought he'd get the higest marks as he always did. But all he got was a measley 104/500. It did not help that his pink haired companion had gotten a 494.

It was obviously a very big mistake on the examiners part.

Sasuke looked up, suddenly aware that a small, soft hand was enclosed around his. He found Sakura smiling at him kindly, and was reminded of her as a tiny, frail child, doing the same.

"You'll do great, Sasuke-kun."

"Tch."

He did not need her pity.

Still, her beaming face was pleasant to look at.

Naruto let out a shrill cry and hastily took Sakura's other hand.

"What about me, Sakura-chan?"

"You'll do fine as long as you stay clear of any Screans."

The blond's protests were interupted by a third figure materializing before them, his long dark locks pulled back into a neat ponytail.

"Captain Kakashi requests you report yourselves to his office immediately."

"Aw, man," Naruto sighed. "Now, Neji?"

The lavender-eyed man gave a curt nod. "Yes, Naruto. Now," he snapped.

Sakura thanked the Hyuuga for his trouble and strided down the dimly lit hallway that was roughly roofed over with thick sheets of dirty canvas. She dragged Naruto and Sasuke along behind her, her fingers still curled protectively around theirs.

It took them several minutes to reach their Counsellor's 'office'. Here, at the base, the term office was usually used to refer to a small, dimly lit room, filled with recycled air and plastic containers that held within them worthless pieces of parchment. Sakura knocked lightly upon the thin pine-wood door that served as a privacy barrier.

The door swung open, and the tired face of Hatake Kakashi greeted them. He beckoned them into his fotresss of solitude, and immediately, the stench of stale air filled the threesome's nostrils.

"What is it now, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto demanded, as he pulled one of the many plastic containers to the middle of the room before landing upon it in a heap, trying and failing to get comfortable in his makeshift seat. "Did you want to wish us luck?" he continued, the sarcasm laced between his words ever-prominent.

"Don't be silly Naruto," countered Sakura. "It's unorthodox for him to wish us luck. This must be something important."

Her eyes were wide, unknowing.

"What's unorthodox?" Naruto asked to no one in particular, his long fingers scratching his scalp.

"Tch. Idiot."

Kakashi took in the three young adults before him with a sigh. He recalled their first meeting in this very room, smiling at the similarities of now and of the past. The Naruto in his memory was also seated upon a plastic container, only in his mind, those tan legs did not touch the floor.

_"Come on old man, give us something fun! Give us an S-rank mission, we could take it!"_

_"No. You three are much too weak. Try cleaning out this office first, then maybe we can discuss S-rank missions. Or perhaps you're much too weak for that as well?"_

_"You fucking geizer!"_

_"Don't swear. And get off that container, now."_

They were nothing alike. The four of them were pieces from different puzzles, forced to create a different picture out of their mismatched selves.

Sakura was much too small. Sasuke was much too proud. Naruto was much too loud.

Kakashi was much too lazy to raise children.

Somehow, they fit together.

For some reason, they completed each other.

The masked man watched the children as they grew into young adults, always keeping a watchful eye, always lending a helping hand, always secretly proud that they were his.

Sakura was still relatively small compared to her peers. But what she lacks in size, she makes up for with her ever-growing knowledge. He often found himself stumped whenever she asked him about terms and definitions that were far beyond him. But he'd place his pride aside and guided her through the books with unpronouncable titles in the library chamber, helping her knowledge surpass his, tucking a thick, wooly blanket around her exhausted form when she nodded off during their study sessions. She was easily the most promising young lady of the base. To him, her looks were merely an added bonus.

Sasuke was still proud. But the time the Uchiha spent with Naruto and Sakura has turned him to a protective older brother. Kakashi had seen the stoic lad's moments of weakness a handful of times. He took note of how the Uchiha's brows would draw together, a frown gracing his lips, pale skin turning pink in frustration whenever his precious companions were gone too long. He has seen how Sasuke would look at someone, and yet, not really see them whenever Naruto or Sakura were away on particularly risky missions. He has heard the onyx eyed teen cry out in his sleep, begging, pleading, _Please don't hurt them, please don't hurt them_. He knows deep down, that Sasuke is a gentle soul, fuelled to carry on and fight for the sake of his precious people.

And boisterous Naruto, the annoying boy who grew to be a thoughtful young lad, never fails to surprise Kakashi. The bitter boy put his dark past behind him, and strides forward to an impossible future, where he is Hokage and the world is at peace. Naruto, who constantly screams of never giving up. Naruto, the boy who Kakashi truly believes will one day become a hero. The boy that Kakashi knows will make a change.

His chest filled with unmistakable pride. And just as the warm feeling spread across his torso, it was gone, and dread and anxiety had taken it's place.

_They're just kids._

"Sensei? Is something wrong?" widened green eyes met his own.

"Maybe you should have a seat," replied Kakashi softly, gesturing towards the plastic container Naruto perched upon.

The three teens huddled against each other on the small cuboid, shoulders touching, faces blank and unknowing.

"Sakura." Kakashi's voice was tired, and strained. It seemed that he was choking on his words, trying his best to spit them out slowly, gently, for their sakes. Willing them to understand.

"Yes, Sensei?"

"You've been stripped of your duties. You are no longer a Chunnin, no longer a soldier. You may return home."

Silence.

And quite suddenly, the room exploded in a mix of ugly sounds.

Naruto was on his feet, shaking his fist in his Counsellor's face, yelling a string of profanities at the top of his lungs. Sakura was still seated upon the plastic container, her hands cupped around her trembling lips, eyes glistening with tears and let a strangled cry slip from her throat, and Kakashi had to bite his lips to stop himself from wincing.

The loudest sound however, was that of Sasuke's fist, as the flesh contacted with the wooden desk from which Kakashi sat opposite.

"No."

The one word was enough to set silence upon the whole base.

"Sasuke..."

"I said, no."

Kakashi sighed.

Somehow, he was not surprised.

"Sasuke. It's out of my hands."

The tall Uchiha was glaring at his Counsellor, eyes sharp and blaming. Sakura placed a small hand upon his shoulder, coaxing him. Her next question did not surprise Kakashi one bit.

"Why?"

Kakashi let out a long sigh. His hands rose to his temples, and he slowly nursed the migrane that was treathening to help his breakfast make a reappearance with experienced fingers. He nodded at the figures before him, willing them to sit.

"The world is ending."

His statement was met with contradicted responses. Naruto burst out laughing, Sakura gasped sharply and Sasuke merely tilted his head to acknowledge the fact.

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard, sensei!" Naruto started, his hands clutching onto his sore sides. "What's that crap got to do with anything-ttebayo?"

"It's not crap Naruto. It's the truth. The world is old, war is everywhere, and if you haven't noticed, mankind is dying out. The generals believe that in order to save mankind, we must preserve the lives of every living female for the purpose of childbirth. This is why Sakura is being discharged."

The blonde immediately clammed his mouth shut, a frown forming between his brow. Sakura took hold of his hand in both of hers, gently stroking the tan skin with her fingers. She avoided Kakashi's knowing gaze and turned to Sasuke, her voice steady as she asked her question.

"Did you know about this?"

The Uchiha met her gaze, his face passive. But she knew him too well, and Sakura could clearly see the guilt hidden behind his eyes. There was something he wasn't telling her, something he was hiding...

_Oh._

Was that it? Did he really think she could...?

She searched for Kakashi's eyes only to find his gaze already locked intensely on hers. Kakashi, the man who never really followed orders. Kakashi, the man who believed that people who abandoned their comrades were worse than trash. Kakashi who taught her to read underneath the underneath.

It all made sense now.

"Hai. I'll step down Captain Kakashi."

"WHAT? THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU SAKURA-CHAN? You can't-"

"Naruto, be quiet."

The blonde shook his head furiously, but his trust in his comrades out weighed his anger, so he kept silent. Kakashi began reading from a piece of paper he had taken out from under his desk, his brows furrowed as he struggled to pronounce the long words that were supposed to inform Sakura that she had been a good soldier, that her part in the army was appreciated but no longer called for. That she was being given an honorable discharge.

Sasuke had his fists clenched at his sides, chin up, eyes fixed on a point behind Kakashi. She caught his eye and nodded, trying to tell him that she understood, that she agreed, that she knew the walls had ears and that they must act submissive and unknowing for the plan to work.

The Uchiha directed his gaze to the right side of the room, then slowly to the left. Sakura's eyes widened. He was shaking his head, telling her no, don't do this. But how could that be? This was the plan wasn't it? He understood what she just did, didn't he? They always had, they always understood each other so perfectly, no words were needed to say what they had to say. How could she be wrong?

Sasuke tilted his head to the side, his gaze now boring into hers. _Come on,_ he thought. _Come on Sakura, you can do this, you can get it. Think._

"...and you are now officially excused from your duties here as a Chunnin Official at the Area 35/139E Army Base. It has been a pleasure, Soldier Haruno."

The rosette looked up, her face hardening. She raised her hand in a half-hearted salute, her head spinning from the confusion of it all. Kakashi then crossed the room and held out his hands, a smile forming behind his mask.

"I'm going to miss you kid. Come here and give me a hug."

Kakashi did not do hugs. He did not intiate contact. He tolerated it.

Sakura rushed to her sensei, not missing a beat.

As expected, Kakashi hid his face in her shoulders, letting her pink locks shield his mouth from view. Slowly, quietly, he spoke.

"There are four cameras in this room. One hidden in the desk, the other three in the walls. The microphone is under the coffee mug. Sakura, they are waiting for you at your quarters. Do not trust anyone besides your comrades. This isn't what you think, it's much bigger. Do not assume. Follow Sasuke's lead, take care. I'll be seeing you soon."

As he slowly released her, she let a wide smile spread upon her features, angling her face towards the desk where the camera was hidden, where there were people watching, and sighed.

"I'll miss you too Kakashi."

* * *

><p>"Okay, spill. What the fuc-"<p>

Sakura's indignant cries were cut short when Sasuke shoved her into a corner, hiding them from sight. He removed his hold on the girl's arm and gestured to Naruto, who was hiding in the opposite corner, to keep watch. The blonde boy merely nodded and stuck his head out slightly to get a clearview of the supposedly deserted hallway. Then, the Uchiha turned his attention to the glowering rosette beside him.

"Since when do you swear?"

The frown on her face deepened. "That doesn't matter. What are you trying to pull here? And what did you mean back there? No?"

"I know as much as you do Sakura."

"Then you don't know shit."

A scoff erupted from the blonde mass opposite them, and Naurto hissed, "I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON SO THE LEAST YOU COULD DO IS MOVE IT BEFORE WE GET KILLED."

They stepped out from their hiding place and crawled through the hallway, taking refugee in various corners whenever a figure emerged.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered after a very scary near-encounter with one of the base's top officials. "What is going on?"

"Ask him."

They pried a loose cupboard door open and filled the the small space with their tired forms. There wasn't even enough space for one person in the tiny cupboard, but considering the situation, they couldn't really complain.

Sasuke moved so that his cheek was not pressed onto Naruto's, and slowly peeled Sakura's limbs from his. He huffed in that arrogant way of his before beginning his story.

"Kakashi called me out a few weeks ago, while you two were on a mission."

Since the Uchiha had insisted on making room for himself, Sakura and Naruto were both tightly pressed together. Their cheeks were touching, and Naruto was pratically on Sakura's lap. Naruto raised his hand from behind Sakura's back and gave Sasuke a thumbs up, urging him on.

"It was after those cameras were installed, so what he said didn't really make sense. He mentioned Naruto eating a leftover sandwich from a recycling bin."

"Oh! Oh! I remember that!" exclaimed Naruto, clearly pleased that he had something to contribute. "Kakashi made us vomit it all out because of some stupid operation the Intruders carried out."

Sakura gave a gasp as realization hit her.

Of course, how could she be so stupid?

"Operation Moon Eye."

The boys turned to face her, alarm in their eyes. Naruto could almost see the flames, the bodies of his base-mates scattered across the sandy battlefield.

Almost like it happened yesterday.

"Sakura-chan, Operation Moon Eye failed. The Intruders backed off. Right?"

"I don't know Naruto."

"Damn."

"Yeah."

They both turned to the brooding Uchiha expectantly.

"Tch. Kakashi mentioned something else that day. He told me to keep an eye on you. He said you were more willing to listen if you were confused."

Sakura bit her lip, stopping herself from protesting. She knew that was true. Why else would she be listening so intently now?

"What were you thinking?" Sasuke asked her flatly.

"I...I was thinking that this was all part of some bigger plan, maybe a top secret mission. I thought, I thought Kakashi expected me to leave quietly, then sneak back into the battlefield or something. ...I thought you and Kakashi were finally letting me do something by myself for a change."

"Hn."

"You already knew what I was thinking, didn't you?"

"Aa."

"Is that why you shook your head at me back there?"

"You're too easy to read Sakura."

"Okay, you guys just lost me again," piped up Naruto, his free hand slowly scratching his scalp.

"So..." the blonde started again. "You're not being discharged because they want you to have little Sakuras?"

"No, I don't think so. This is much bigger than that. What else did Kakashi say, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke remained silent for a moment, his mind whirring.

"He said that you liked to write a lot when we were little. He mentioned a diary."

_A diary?_ Sakura thought. Slowly, it came to her, a loose notebook she had made herself, the words she had written, the night Sasuke interupted her writting.

Her mouth spoke before her mind could piece these memories togther, before Sakura herself could make sense of it all.

"I wrote about the mission in detail in one of my diary entries. It was the night you had that nightmare about Itachi. I think that's what Kakashi wants us to do."

The three were solemn for a moment. Naruto scrunched his brows togther in full concentration before sheepishly asking his rosette comrade, "...Kakashi wants us to do what exactly?"

"I'm guessing he wants us to find out more about Operation Moon Eye in secret. Women being discharged from the base, it makes no sense. Right now, we probably need all the soldiers we can get if we were to ever win the war. That can only mean one thing. The Intruders have either found away to hijack the top authorities here at the base, or they've taken over the base themselves."

"Fuck."

"Exactly, Naruto."

"So what's the plan, teme?"

"Get the diary."

"Then what?"

"Then we-"

The cupboard door flew open with a bang. Rough hands forced their way in, grabbing onto sleeves and clumps of hair. Sakura couldn't make sense of anything. One moment, Naruto's warm, protective arms were pressed against her sides, and the next, they were gone. Her eyes scanned through the chaos, searching desperately for that head of blonde hair. There were hands grabbing on to her now, trying to force her out of the tiny space. Sasuke was somewhere next to her, she could feel him struggling. His hands were pressed against her back, while his legs were halfway out of the cupboard, his eyes full of panic. There was a loud thump of skin upon skin and Sakura was thrown out the cupboard, her back covered with a warm, sticky liquid. In the split second that she had to turn around, she absorbed all that she could of the scene before her.

Naruto was thrown across the back of a large, heavily scarred man, his mouth bleeding, his blue irises rolling to the back of his head. There were four unfamiliar figures in full black uniforms struggling to get up from the floor, their faces full of rage, their eyes meeting hers. The cupboard door lay on the floor, completely unhinged, and upon it lay Sasuke, his arm in an impossible angle, forehead and nose covered in blood, his mouth opening to repeat a single syllable over and over again.

_**"Run!"**_

Sakura took off, her heart beating at an erratic pace. She tripped over her own two feet and fell rather ungracefully to the floor, her chin breaking the fall. She crawled, and forced herself to stand, then continued running again.

There were yells echoing all around her, filthy words and promise of death. She ran and ran, down the halls and around the corners, praying for safety. Her frantic sprint left her winded and sore, and her feet collapsed beneath her countless times. Suddenly, she was falling, and sharp stabs of pain were burying themselves in different parts of her tiny form. When her head took a hit, she blacked out, and regained conciousness an eternity later. She found herself sprawled on the floor, and raised her head to glare at the flight of stairs that had so obviously contributed to her crumpled form. Her shaky arms pulled herself up, and the sound of angry yells forced her into another agonizing sprint. Finally, she was at the door to the female sleeping quarters, her hand outstreched, closed upon the doorknob.

The door was forced open upon her face, and she was pushed backward onto the wall.

Two young men exited the room, their faces hidden behind orange masks. Both men had a thin piece of glass straped to their wrist, which was exclaiming in a monotoned female voice, "_Alert, alert, code 3._" Their urgency proved to be a blessing in disguise, for they did not notice the rosette slumped against the wall. Slowly, Sakura crawled into her quarters, every part of her screaming in protest at the slightest movement.

She pulled herself across the room, to the futon against the dirty wall, her hands feeling the ground desperately for that loose plank. Her fingernails dug into the wood and pulled, and just as it had countless times before, the loose piece of plywood opened to reveal a small hidden compartment. She pushed old pictures, pens and mismatched treasures aside and reached for her diary, her fingers digging into its cardboard binding before stuffing it down her shirt. She could hear voices now, they were getting closer by the minute. She didn't have time.

She wasn't going to make it.

Slowly, she forced herself into a seating position and edged towards the dusty window at the end of the room, using the wall to push herself forward. Just as the door to the room burst open, she pushed herself over the window sill and fell two stories to the ground below, landing in a conveniently placed bush.

She couldn't breathe.

She couldn't see.

She couldn't feel her arms.

_She was probably dead._

Sakura truly believed then, that she was dead; that the voice calling her name was surely an angel sent to make her journey to the afterlife more bearable. But her body still hurt all over, and this didn't seem fair at all. Shouldn't the pain disappear with death? Shouldn't she be allowed to rest peacefully in full comfort for all eternity?

Painfully, she willed her eyes to open. She was alive. But how could that be? Naruto was there, and so was Sasuke. Their mouths were moving, their eyes were frantic, but the ringing in her ears prevented her from making sense of it all. They seemed to be getting smaller, their cries less defiant. She should go after them, but it was so very nice and subtle here in her dazed state, and she was scared to move, she was scared to be the hero. Didn't they do the saving? Shouldn't they be able to jump off that truck by themselves?

The fog that was filling her head lifted, and before Sakura could force herself to chase after the truck that carried the very injured, very much captured Sasuke and Naruto, a hand covered her mouth and a strong pungent scent filled her nostrils. The last thing she saw before the darkness took over was a thin man in an all black uniform.

She was probably dead.

_I will not let anything take away what's standing in front of me. Every breath, every hour has come to this._


End file.
